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Natural History Magazine 

Features

October 01, 2023

Social Change, One Step at a Time

Buddhist nuns in Nepal are changing traditional, male-centric power dynamic through public performance of sacred dance.

December 01, 2020

Dancing on a Lotus

A thousand-year-old secret Newar Buddhist dance practice goes global.

July 01, 2019

Odissi: A reconstructed classical dance of India

The poetry sculpted onto temple stone and performed by living Odissi dancers forms a confluence of grace and sensuality.

November 01, 2018

Pasupati

A midnight ceremony in Bali consecrates the newly-made dance masks for use in sacred ritual.

March 01, 2018

A Javanese court dance represents and reinforces the power of the sultan and the values of the culture.

March 01, 2017

The Lila of the Gnawa: A Ritual Traverse from Slavery to Redemption

The Gnawa of Morocco employ an all-night ritual 

of trance dancing to make peace with the residual 

memories of enslavement.

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March 24, 2024

Reaching for the Poetic: Shen Wei's 'Dongpo'

Shen Wei's ode to Chinese poet Su Dongpo.

March 3, 2024

A Golden Gift: Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker's 'Goldberg Variations'

Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker's 60th birthday gift to herself — dancing to J.S. Bach's 'Goldberg Variations.'

February 4, 2024

Timeless Expression: 'Nihon Buyo in the 21st Century'

Japan Society’s timeless program of traditional Nihon Buyo dance incorporating contemporary influences.

January 28, 2024

In Praise of Light: Compagnie Hervé Koubi Presents 'Sol Invictus'

Review of France-based Compagnie Hervé Koubi's 'Sol Invictus.'

January 21, 2024

Celebrating Process

A look at new commissioned projects of Works & Process at the Guggenheim.

January 7, 2024

A Hero's Journey: 'Call Me Dancer'

The film 'Call Me Dancer' tells the true-life story of Mumbai street dancer Manish Chauhan becoming a ballet professional.

Archive

ARCHIVE

June 01, 2016

A choreographer expresses the contemporary

paradox of being a woman, Muslim, North

African, Arab, and artist. 

March 01, 2016

State-sponsored Happiness

The Himalayan nation of Bhutan prepares for

the sixtieth birth anniversary of previous king.

The birthday gift of choice for this benevolent

monarch is dance.

October 01, 2015

A Romantic in Search of the Authentic

A look into Myanmar's dance traditions.

March 01, 2015

From War to Enlightenment

A Bhutanese ritual enactment celebrates a

historic battle strategem.

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June 01, 2014

The Imperative of Memory

A dance archive offers lessons learned from the

near-death of the Khmer culture.

November 01, 2012

The Mandala of Dance

In Bhutan, the land of Gross National Happiness,

everyone is a dancer.

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Fjord Review

Nov 5, 2023

Women's Stories

Interviews with creators of Limón Company's boundary-pushing program with new commission by Hilla Ben Ari.

Oct 22, 2023

Radical Dance for Now

Pop-up performances of early Martha Graham solos in galleries at the Metropolitan Museum of Art dialogue with exhibition of turbulent art and politics in the 1930s.

Oct 15, 2023

Bijayini Satpathy's Odissi

Bijayini Satpathy brings her artistry to New York City pioneering her own expression of Odissi dance.

August 13, 2023

Runners

Czech circus Cirk la Putyka debuts an existential "Runners" at PS21 in upstate New York.

July 30, 2023

One Dance

Seoul Metropolitan Dance Theatre presents a royal ancestral ritual, "One Dance," as part of Korean Arts Week at Lincoln Center’s "Summer for the City."

August 13, 2023

Looking for Juan

Ballet Hispánico presents a stirring visualization of painter Juan de Pareja’s life in “Buscando a Juan” in conversation with an exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

July 16, 2023

Storytelling

At Kaatsbaan, Emily Coates and Emmanuèle Phuon's “We” uses narrative skills from disparate classical forms to tell stories about ritual, nature, cultural identity, history, and science.

July 2, 2023

Space for Transformation

Creating a space for transformation, Japan Society presents a new dance-opera developed by the Brooklyn-based multidisciplinary duo Ximena Garnica and Shige Moriya.

June 18, 2023

Castles in the Sky

Gallim Dance returned to the Joyce Theater with a generous program titled “Bodies of Matter” that celebrated the company’s fifteen years.

May 28, 2023

Leaps and Bounds

Gibney Company  goes forward in leaps and bounds with a spring season at the Joyce.

March 19, 2023

Naharin’s Enigmatic Hora

The Batsheva Dance Company returned to New York City after a four year hiatus to perform “Hora,” created by Ohad Naharin.

March 5, 2023

Dohee Lee Reimagines a Korean Ritual to Heal - Fjord Review

Dohee Lee invites the presence of her Korean ancestors for her world premiere of “Chilseong Saenamgut (Duringut): Ritual for Sickness.”

February 19, 2023

The Slowest Wave

A groundbreaking collaboration is afoot involving New York City butoh dance company Vangeline Theater, “The Slowest Wave.”

January 29, 2023

The Perpetual Motion of Longing

Sharon Eyal’s “Soul Chain” was created for and performed by tanzmainz, the contemporary dance company of the Staatstheater Mainz in Germany.

December 25, 2022

A Gift for the Season

Gibney Company presents Ohad Naharin's acclaimed work, "Yag."

October 2, 2022

An inspired program in celebration of Philip Glass's 85th birthday at Kaatsbaan featured five superb choreographers' responses to Philip Glass's etudes for piano played live by the finest interpreters.

August 21, 2022

Mythili Prakash and her collaborators a second generation of diasporic Indian creatives who are daring to retell their cultural myths.

August 7, 2022

The Vertigo Dance Company from Israel inscribes pure poetry written onto the earth.

June 25, 2022

Interview with recipient of the 2022 Jacob's Pillow Award  renowned Belgian-Moroccan choreographer, dancer, and director Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui.

April 25, 2022

Shamel Pitts and his international, multidisciplinary arts collective Tribe present long-delayed New York premiere of Black Hole: Trilogy and Trathlon offering a journey to find healing and home.

Buddhist Door Global

May 29, 2024

A visit to Karma Drubdey Nunnery in central Bhutan, where female monastics are manifesting the rich heritage of cham — ritual Buddhist dance.

January 26, 2024

The story of the stupa construction, funerary ceremony, and cremation of the fearless Chöd master Lama Wangdu.

September 28, 2023

Nuns of Thrangu Tara Abbey broke glass ceiling with performance of sacred dance at 2014 Kagyu Monlam.

August 25, 2023

A group of Western practitioners make a pilgrimage to a remote region of Bhutan to manifest and sustain an ancient and sacred Buddhist dance.

June 14, 2023

The Buddhist nuns of Nagi Gompa in Nepal perform a sacred dance to cut through dualistic thinking.

February 28, 2023

An exploration of tantric song and dance practices at Druk Amitabha Mountain Nunnery on the outskirts of Kathmandu.

August 31, 2022

A tantric traditon from Nepal that brings dance and meditation together

February 21, 2024

Untying the Knot in 'The Monk and the Gun'

Review of Bhutanese filmmaker Pawo Choyning Dorji's wry allegory for his rapidly modernizing country.

Tricycle Magazine

Features

May 20, 2024

Holding Avalokiteshvara

Lopön Jigme Tingdzin Zangmo discusses the profound practice of compassion found in the Druk Amitabha Mountain Center's annual Avalokiteshvara Drupchen.

October 30, 2023

Becoming Vajrayogini

Pilgrimage to Kathmandu Valley in search of the sacred feminine — Vajrayogini.

March 8, 2023

Nuns Dance to a Song of Interconnection

A visit to Tek Chok Ling Nunnery in Nepal sheds light on the nuns’ unique practice of dancing to Milarepa’s “A Song of Meaningful Connection.”

October 25, 2021

Dakini Dances

Female monastics claim their legacy of sacred Buddhist dance — empowering themselves and enriching their communities.

June 14, 2021

The Bhutanese Dance Legacy of Pema Lingpa —Still Thriving after 500 Years

On the 500th anniversary of the Great Treasure Revealer's passing, Bhutan hosts a year-long celebration, complete with the sacred dances he taught.

April 27, 2021

The Kung Fu Nuns Dance a Powerful Ritual

The fearless Drukpa nuns are breaking glass ceilings again—this time with ritual performance.

November 11, 2020

Teaching Happiness—Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom Review

Bhutanese film Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom offers a Buddhist lesson in true fulfillment.

June 11, 2020

Dancing Tara through COVID-19

A practitioner finds empowerment and community through performing the sacred dance of the Buddhist deity, Tara, using Zoom.

November 02, 2018

The Moving Mandala: Inside Bhutan's Sacred Dance Festivals

The story behind the Tantric master who brought sacred dances to the Himalayan region and the singular dance displaying his remarkable manifestations and activities.

Ballet Review

Features

September 01, 2019

Batsheva Legacy

The Batsheva Dance Company continues to offer bold and commanding performances as a new generation of exciting choreographers is unleashed.

September 01, 2019

White Light

The ninth year of the festival offers powerful, gross-genre works that transcend disciplinary boundaries.

June 01, 2019

Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker Choreographs Bach

Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker presents Bach's Six Brandenburg Concertos in the epic 55,000-square-foot Drill Hall at New York's Park Avenue Armory.

June 01, 2019

Drive East 2018

The 2018 Drive East Festival of Indian Music and Dance offered an inspiring week-long program featuring a rich variety of top-level performing artists from India and the United States.

June 01, 2019

A Conversation with Maya Kulkarni and Mesma Belsaré

An interview with the highly talented Indian dancer and artist, Mesma Belsaré, and her mentor/choreographer, Maya Kulkarni.

June 01, 2019

In the Court of Yogyakarta

The court musicians and dancers of Yogyakarta perform signature dance traditions at Asia Society.

December 31, 2018

The Space Between

Andrea Miller's Gallim Dance Company receives a year-long residency at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

December 31, 2018

Site-Specific at the Rubin

The Rubin Museum partners with Pentacle Management in a series of site-specific dance offerings in their galleries.

September 01, 2018

A Day in the Life of Nrityagram

At the odissi dance village outside of Bangalore, the dancers create a new choreography -- Dasavataar -- The Ten Incarnations of Vishnu.

June 01, 2018

Three Israeli Choreographers

Three Israeli choreographers produce works that reflect the society's intensity and directness owing to a history of existential concerns.

June 01, 2018

Drive East

The Drive East Festival of Indian Music and Dance offers bold choreographic ideas in tandem with respect for tradition and super-charged dancing.

January 01, 2018

Two English Operas

Mark  Morris brings generous double bill of Britten's Curlew River and Purcell's Dido and Aeneas to the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

September 01, 2017

A Mosaic in the Making

A look at the process as Belgian-Moroccan choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui creates a commission for the Martha Graham Dance Company.

September 01, 2017

Mr. Gaga

Ohad Naharin and the Batsheva Dance Company of Israel deliver a plea for the soul of their country with Last Work.

September 01, 2017

Geimaruza Nihon Buyo

The youthful nihon buyo dance ensemble from Japan offers selections from the traditional repertoire that capture the essence of Japanese culture and sensibilities.

June 01, 2017

Dancing Black Lives (Matter)

2016 BAM Next Wave Festival becomes well-disposed platform for Black Lives Matter message.

June 01, 2017

White Lights 2016

Lincoln Center's White Light Festival grapples with what it means to be human (or humane) and finds that Indian dance has done this centuries.

June 01, 2017

Next Wave 2016

An abundance of talent is presented at the 2016 Next Wave Festival at Brooklyn Academy of Music – especially in the smaller venues.

March 01, 2017

The Kanze Noh Theatre from Japan took audiences on a journey into their 700-year-old ritualized blend of music, poetry, drama, and dance at the 2016 Lincoln Center Festival.

September 01, 2016

A Conversation With Surupa Sen and Bijayini Sathpathy

Surupa Sen and Bijayini Sathpathy of the Nrityagram Dance Ensemble discuss the focus of their Artistic Residency at Baryshnikov Arts Center as well as life at the Nrityagram dance village.

June 01, 2016

A Path to Extreme Dance

Choreographer Andrea Miller pushes the limits of what is possible in danced movement with her "Jedi" dancers of Gallim Dance.

September 01, 2015

Batsheva at 50

The Batsheva Dance Company of Israel turns fifty and celebrates with an international tour performing Sadeh21 by Ohad Naharin, the company's artistic director and creator of the movement system called Gaga.

March 01, 2015

The Early Work of Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker

Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker brings a program of her early works to Lincoln Center in celebration of 30 years of making and performing dances with her company Rosas. Her dances are informed by a rigorous exploration of  music forms and geometric structures. 

June 01, 2014

Scribbler of Tales

Akram Khan brilliantly blends contemporary dance with his native kathak (classical Indian) idiom to spin a universal tale of searching for one's roots.

September 01, 2014

The Legacy of Shiva

In India, the Hindu God Shiva is considered the Lord of the Dance and is believed to have danced the world into existence with his divine movements. This spiritual and artistic energy was renewed at the World Music Institute's "Dancing the Gods" festival as well as Nrityagram's odissi offerings at the Baryshnikov Arts Center.

September 01, 2013

Personal Territory

Zvi Gotheiner's Dabke takes a simple, Middle Eastern dance form (the dabke) and uses it to explore the dynamics of the dance and the greater cultural and political issues within the Middle East. 

June 01, 2013

What the Body Remembers

The apsaras, or celestial dancers, were always considered to be guardians of the Cambodian people. After the Cambodian culture suffered near annihilation at the hands of the genocidal Pol Pot regime of the late 1970s, its dancers and artists have regenerated their cultural legacy and brought a sampling to New York City in the form of Season of Cambodia. 

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Lion's Roar Magazine

October 02, 2020

The Kung Fu Nuns, Fighting for All Sentient Beings

A courageous group of Himalayan Buddhist sisters dance, cycle, and practice kung fu to champion gender equality and respect for the environment.

arts•meme

January 15, 2023

Vertigo Dance Company’s time to heal & time to dance

Vertigo Dance Company from Israel brings new work "Pardes" to New York's Baryshnikov Arts Center.

May 12, 2022

During her year-long tenure as artist-in-residence at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, classical Odissi dancer Bijayini Satpathy challenged herself and museum visitors to respond to art and dance in new ways.

April 19, 2022

The Limón Company celebrates José Limón’s artistic legacy and brings his humanistic vision into the present moment and landscape.

April 15, 2022

Ashwini Ramaswamy, youngest family member of the Ragamala Dance Company, ventured out on her own creating a bold and refreshing experimental Bharatanatyam work Let the Crows Come.

DanceTabs

January 25, 2022

Reggie Wilson / Fist and Heel Performance Group – POWER

Reggie Wison's "Power" is a work borne of reimagining what Black Shaker worship was like in all its amazing complexity.

January 19, 2021

Japan Society – 2022 Contemporary Dance Festival: Japan + East Asia

Japan Society's contemporary dance festival showcases a new generation of engaging and skillful East Asian performing artists, who are generating refreshing work around new and old ideas.

December 17, 2021

Bijayini Satpathy Premieres Abhipsaa — A Seeking

An artist's journey into and out of solitude.

December 13, 2021

Maya Kulkarni & Kaustavi Sarkar — Woman with a Parrot

Migration of a dance from on-camera to live performance.

November 11, 2021

The Art of Fugue by ZviDance = Bach Cubed

A musical form ignites the pathway for the harmonious collaboration of many distinct voices.

October 31, 2021

Martha Graham Dance Company New York Season: On Human Nature

Opening night program of the Martha Graham Dance Company served up satisfying nourishment for the human soul.

October 25, 2021

Andrea Miller at the Martha Graham 2021-22 Studio Series

Report from a working rehearsal of Miller's new work, Scavengers, for the Graham Company's October season in one week.

September 30, 2021

Ragamala Dance Company Performs Fires of Varanasi: Dance of the Eternal Pilgrim

The Joyce Theater reopens its doors to initiate live performances with the Ragamala Dance Company.

Tashi Delek Magazine

Features

January 01, 2017

Double Sighting

A surprise, once-in-a-lifetime sacred tapestry

consecration at an ancient Bhutanese temple.

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November 01, 2018

The Story Within the Llama's Temple

A visit to the Chakhar Temple in the Bumthang Valley reveals a painting that tells how the all-powerful Buddhist saint Padmasambhava first came and performed miracles that enabled the spread of Buddhism through the Himalayan region.

May 01, 2018

To Trongsa

A recap of the rich dance legacy performed at the annual Trongsa Tshechu -- a superb example of how the Bhutanese use dance to express fundamental ideas.

July 01, 2018

Kushuthara -- A Token of Love

Bhutan's first female filmmaker, Karma Deki, creates a uniquely Bhutanese story and film that truly teaches the meaning of karma.

May 01, 2014

The First Glimpse

First impressions of the nation of Bhutan.

November 01, 2014

Guardians of Culture

A report on how Bhutan measures up to the country's 

mission to preserve its intangible culture.

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Ms. Magazine

July 13, 2021

Empowering Women, Crushing Obstacles

The Kung Fu nuns of Nepal create change through ritual dance.

Witty Partition

April 01, 2021

A Reason to Dance

The rich dance legacy performed at Trongsa in Bhutan offers a superb example of how the Bhutanese use dance to express their most fundamental ideas.

Ballet Review

Bureau Reports

Bio

BIO

I'm a New York City-based dance writer and frequent contributor to Natural History Magazine and Ballet Review, covering contemporary and traditional dance at home and abroad.

     My passion is to learn how people everywhere express themselves through movement and transmit that information. Wherever I travel, I engage with local performing artists and ritual practitioners to gain a deeper understanding of their dances and traditions --a window into how they understand the world. 

     I joined my first dance circle as a child accompanying

my mother to her weekly

international folk dance sessions at the local community center. Smitten by the physical movement and the exotic music, I sought out formal dance training, and earned a BFA in dance at North Carolina School of the Arts.

     After moving to New York and working with several modern dance companies, I developed a creative movement curriculum for young children which I implemented in several New York City Schools. 

     Much later, I discovered that if I wrote about the dance I observed, I could enjoy the experience again and again.

Contact

CONTACT

For writing assignments or other inquiries, please contact me at:

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